


Decks, Appreciation, and Friendship

by Mello_Drama_Reborn



Category: Future Card Buddyfight
Genre: Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-11
Updated: 2015-10-11
Packaged: 2018-04-25 20:09:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4974739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mello_Drama_Reborn/pseuds/Mello_Drama_Reborn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gremlin doesn't want friends, doesn't think anyone worthy of it- but in the wake of deckbuilding for Disaster, he's pulled into Shido's desperate need for friendship- and finds himself unable to resist when Shido, of all people, seems to appreciate the decks he builds. </p><p>(Season 1 fic taking place just before the reveal of D. Dragon World, based on Genma's comment about Shido wanting friendship as well as how oddly convinient Shido's deck ended up being to his revenge... Almost as if his deckbuilder had his interests in mind...)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Retsu stepped calmly up to the grandoise doorstep of the Shido residence, ringing the doorbell without hesitation. Immediately he could hear activity from inside, and moments later Shido's father was at the door, his face familiar from offical buddypolice statements he'd seen on television. 

"Oh? Who are you? If you're a soliciter, we aren't interested." 

Retsu shook his head, adjusting the strap of the bookbag on his shoulder. 

"No, I'm a friend of your son's, Retsu Omori... We're in a club together. I came to bring him something."

"Wait- is that really you?" Shido's voice came from further in the house as he pushed his father aside. "Gremli-" 

"Sh!" Retsu cut him off, eyeing his father. "Outside of disaster, I'm Omori, got it?" Rather than nod, Shido just gave him a smug grin.

"Right. Well, come in, Retsu!" 

Retsu winced a bit at Shido's use of his first name- no one besides his parents had called him that since he and Baku played together as children, but he said nothing. Perhaps it would be more convincing that he'd come for a friendly visit if they were on a first name basis. 

Shido led him up to his room, which was as gaudy as he'd expected, with ornately framed photographs from birthdays and parties and other special events lining the walls. Shido sat down on the edge of the bed as Retsu lowered his schoolbag off of his shoulder, sitting down on the floor by a low table. As he went through the bag, Shido seemed the be looking him up and down, slightly unnerving him as he placed two decks on the table. 

"So your name's Retsu Omori, huh? I didn't think you had a real name."

"Obviously, I do- and apparently I didn't need to tell you it."

Shido shrugged haughtily. "I heard you say it to my father, that's all." Retsu only huffed in reply, sliding out two paper mats from his bag and carefully unfolding them. Shido continued to watch him, his stare burning holes into him. "... It's odd seeing you in a school uniform- I've only ever seen you in the whole disaster getup. You almost look normal."   
Retsu conciously decided to ignore his last comment as he closed his bag and put it aside. 

"All of us have lives outside of disaster. Now, if you're done with your commentary, I came here for a reason." Shido eyed the two decks eagerly, sliding off his bed to join him at the table. Retsu passed him one of the decks, smirking slightly at the thought of its build.   
"Earlier, Kyoya assigned you a new buddy monster- one from Darkness Dragon World, correct?"

"It is!" Shido proudly held up the card, and immedately Death Ruler Gallows emerged from it, snickering as it eyed the deck in front of it.

"Then it's time for you to finally wittness its power. With this deck, I'll teach you the power of Darkness Dragon World!" Retsu picked up the deck in front of him, glancing at the top two cards before putting them both aside with a smirk. "I've constucted a deck to tune with that I think will clearly demonstrate the power of what I've given you."  
The playmats already in place, he took the two cards he set aside and flipped them up in the flag and buddy areas. Leaning over to look, Shido let out a gasp, the color draining from his face. 

"That buddy- you're using a Dual Sieger deck!?"

Retsu nodded, his smirk not leaving. "You lost quite badly to this deck during the ABC cup, but play like I tell you to, and you'll find it to be an easy opponent."   
Shido nodded uneasily, placing Gallows in the buddy area and taking the flag from the top of the deck, glancing at it curiously before placing it down as well. 

Retsu hoped that it was Shido's fear of Dual Sieger that caused him to hesitate as he mulled over his first hand, tapping one finger impatiently against the table as he waited to see his first Darkness Dragon World deck in action. 

"For now, place the monster with the most defense in your center- if any are tied, put those with highest criticals on the sides." 

"Shouldn't I put my strongest monster in the center?"

Retsu sighed, staring down at the card he planned to put down next turn. "I'm going to have to destroy your center to do damage, so if you put troublesome monsters on the sides, I'll have to put off doing damage to get rid of them." 

"Oh... Right." Shido set down his cards, calling his attack on Retsu's center monster. Retsu's smirk returned as he reached across the table to point to Shido's card. 

"Don't bother, attack me directly." 

"What? Oh, Shadow Dive...?" Retsu leaned back as Shido looked over the never before seen card effect- one of the skills that made Darkness Dragon World so incredible. Shido's confidence seemed to boost as he realized the power he had as he redeclared his attack, and Retsu obediently took his damage. His pride in the Gallows deck fell away to disappointment in its owner when moments later, Retsu watched Shido's fragile confidence fall away as Dual Seiger entered the field. 

"Uggh, that awful dragon with double attack, soulguard, and muliple forms- it just isn't fair! I've gotten this far and now it's going to defend your lifepoints like a dog!" 

Retsu declared his attacks, wiping out Shido's center and delivering two points of damage. 

"You don't have to worry about Dual Seiger, remember? You don't have to touch a single soul, let alone worry about it's other forms."

Shido's face changed as he realized what Retsu meant, looking down at the cards in his hand as if finally understanding them. Retsu let himself smirk again as Shido's pompus grin returned to his face, the arching of his eyebrows giving away the luck of his draw. 

"I buddycall Death Ruler Gallows to my center and gain one life point! Then I pay one gauge to cast Judgement Day, and give Gallows and my other Death monsters an extra critical! Then Gallows attacks you directly, and I gain another lifepoint from Soul Absorbtion Chain!" He let out a laugh as he rested his card. "Hah! In just one attack I've made your last turn completely useless and done three damage! This is too easy!"   
And it was- within the next turn, Retsu was defeated. Normally he'd be annoyed with how Shido acted as if his own skill had won the battle, but his pride in the Shadow Dive deck outweighed the annoyance, and he allowed Shido a brief moment to celebrate his victory, no matter how obvious the outcome. 

"Of course you won- that deck was made specifically to fight decks like Dual Seiger. You'd have to manage at least this much for me to entrust you with this deck."  
Ignoring the disrespect in his tone, Shido just laughed, holding up the deck like a trophy. 

"Perfectly suited- hmhmhm! Yes, it's perfect! With this I'll show Genma, and everyone else!" He turned to Retsu, his expression heavy with confidence. "Thank you, Gremlin. I knew I could count on your skills to make such a flawless deck." 

Retsu stopped repacking his bag, not expecting Shido of all people to thank him. He quickly looked back to the table before Shido could see the appreciation on his face, starting to fold up his playmats again.

"Well, all it takes is a strong deck to make a strong fighter..." 

"That's right! Once they see how badly I defeat Genma with this- everyone in Disaster will forget my embarrassing loss at the ABC cup and realize how strong I am!" As if sensing Retsu was already off guard, Shido gave a small gasp of realization. "Wait, you said this deck was made specifically for decks like Genma's... Are you trying to help me win back repport with Disaster?"

"I didn't think of it in those terms. I just don't want anyone insulting the people using the decks I make." 

Shido stared at him, his pompus air faltering. 

"...So even though everyone is always making fun of me, you really think I can win with this?" 

Retsu glanced over his shoulder at him again, the desperation in Shido's features catching him by suprise a second time and sending his eyes back into his bag. 

"Like I said, all it takes is a strong deck to make a strong fighter, and I gave you the strongest I have... I believe you could beat anyone using that deck." 

"Oh, Gremlin..." Retsu jolted at how his voice shook- he refused to look at Shido in case he was about to cry. He wasn't even used to people appreciating the decks he built, he wouldn't know what to do if he cried.   
Instead, Shido ran out the door and to the railing overlooking the staircase, calling down below, "Daddy!! Grem- er, Retsu made me a buddyfight deck, and it's amazing! Can we have him over, Daddy?" 

"Of course- the very best for a friend of my dear Magoroku's!"

His father's voice was equally dramatic from the bottom of the stairs, and loud enough that Retsu was embarrassed to be able to hear it from Shido's room.   
Turning away from the stairwell, Shido turned to look at Retsu through the open doorway, grinning uncomfortably wide. 

"That's right- only the best for my friends!" 

Finally picking his bag off the floor, Retsu crossed the room so he could reply without his father hearing.   
"This had nothing to do with friendship- I'm just following Kyoya's orders." 

Shido just shook his head, his grin unfaltering.

"I don't think so! I heard you tell Daddy yourself- you're my friend!" 

Retsu's mind flew back to when the older Shido had answered the door- he'd been nervous about how to talk to the adult and said the first thing that came to his mind. Now it suddenly made sense why Shido had been so familiar with him when he came in- but had that little cover story really made that much of an impact on him?   
Either way, Shido didn't seem to have any intention of letting him take it back, crossing his arms stubbornly.   
"So since you're my friend, you are getting the best! Prepare for the dinner of a lifetime!"

Retsu just sighed, and mentally prepared himself for the most tiring dinner conversation of his life instead.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little further into the future, this time before the Gaen cup, Retsu can't resist trying out his latest masterpiece of Darkness Dragon World and invites Shido to his home to tune it- but his visit ends up reminding him of the days where he happily played with friends, making him realize he might not be as adverse to friendship as he thought.

Retsu tried to ignore the way Magoroku Shido sized up his home as he entered, his family's house being much smaller than the magnificant mansion Shido grew up in. He couldn't stand the thought of giving the fighter any more reasons to feel suprior to him, already regretting having invited him over. As Shido slipped off his shoes and stepped further inside, Retsu was too lost in his own grumblings to notice the other's wandering eye as he spotted Retsu's mom in the kitchen, and before he had the chance to stop him, Shido had wandered off the greet her.

"Good evening, Mrs. Omori. Thank you _so_ much for having me over." 

Retsu's mother turned around with what Retsu hoped was exaggerated suprise, pressing a hand to her lips to stiffle her gasp.

"It's my pleasure! Retu's always staying out late to go to your club, but he hasn't brought a friend over since elementary school! Honestly, I was starting to think he'd joined a gang!" 

Shido laughed, and Retsu let out a silent sigh of relief at seeing him keep a decent poker face."Well, you don't have to worry about him, Mrs. Omori."

"That's right." Retsu stepped in between them, trying to end the conversation himself.  
"Mother, this is Magoroku Shido, student coucil president of Aibou acadamey- a far cry from whatever 'bad company' you've been imagining me with."

"Well, I wish you'd brought him over sooner! You've gotten so withdrawn lately, you can't blame me for wondering if you were hiding something!"

"She's right, you know. I can't _believe_ you didn't invite me over earlier."  
Retsu frowned, disliking the feeling of being gained up on as much as the sight of Shido stiffling laughter. He turned away, motioning for Shido to follow. 

"Anyway, we're going to my room, so don't disturb us." 

"Alright- oh, and Magoroku, you're staying over for dinner, aren't you?"

"Mother-"

"I'd _love_ to!" 

Retsu grabbed Shido roughly by the collar of his shirt, starting to drag him up the stairs as his mother giggled after them.

 

Shido was still snickering as Retsu pulled him inside the room, roughly shutting the door behind him. Shido instantly began to make himself at home, sitting down on the bed and gazing around the room, unperturbed even when Retsu fixed him a glare. Idily, Shido reached out to flip up the downturned photograph on Retu's desk, and Retsu immedately slapped his hand away, intensifying the strength of his glare. In response, Shido only shrugged, leaning back against the wall and kicking his feet out. 

"It really was suprising to have you invite me over, though. What's the occassion?"

"Simple. I'd like you to tune a deck for me." Saying this, Retsu walked over to his desk, pulling out his dark core deck case from one of the drawers. "I can't do it properly by myself."

"And you couldn't wait until Disaster?" Shido tilted his head, somewhat unfamiliar the sight of Retsu using his offical deck case.

"I could, but I'm a bit impatient to see this deck in action." 

"Wait- is it for you? I didn't think you played outside of tuning." 

Retsu chuckled, taking the deck out of it's case and fanning out the cards in his hands, looking over them all with anticpation. 

"I don't- for me, the matches are decided when the decks are illuminised." He consolidated the deck again, gripping it with excitement. "But in this case, I want the satisfaction of seeing it come together in a fight." He put the deck back in its case, unfolding his playmats on a small coffee table. "Use whatever deck you want, though I'd like to see how this fares against a fellow Darkness Dragon deck."  
Shido nodded, pulling his deck from his pocket and putting it down on one of the playmats, taking Gallows and his flag out into their respective areas. Retsu smiled, and Shido seemed to sense his excitement, shrinking under his intensity. 

It was the debut of Death Talica. A combination of the best elements from both his previous Darkness Dragon World decks, all combined to perfectly compliment the main attraction- it was his masterpiece, his mastery of Darkness Dragon World solidified. 

"Auugh- I don't understand! Sure, it's strong, but my deck is supposed to beat those overpowered size 3 monsters, right?! How did you beat me!?" 

"Simple: mine's a better deck than yours." Retsu's smile hadn't faltered for the entire game, and he continued to wear his satisfied smirk as he put away his cards. Retsu normally wouldn't be one to gloat- it was true that the game could have easily gone in Shido's favor, had his draws been better- but there was an immense satisfaction in using the deck how it was meant to be used, and his success against a strategically privilleged opponent only meant that he had truely mastered Darkness Dragon World.  
In his own satisfaction, he almost missed Shido's discomfort. Knowing the makeup of both decks, Retsu was never suprised at the outcome, but Shido was still looking at his cards on the mat cluelessly.

"... You said I could beat anyone with this deck."

His pitiful remark reminded Retsu of Shido's own deck's debut, and the awkward memory of how truely appreciative Shido had been. Suddenly feeling the slightest pang of guilt for chosing to crush that deck in particular, he glanced toward the photograph on his desk as an excuse to look away.

"...That was true, at the time- but it doesn't count the decks I've made since then. That includes this one, Davide's, and of course the one I'm working on for our leader." 

"So Davide's is stronger than mine too?"

"I'm not saying that- they're equally well made. Nothing would be decisive." Though Shido nodded, he didn't look reassured. Sighing with a bit with of frustration, Retsu fell back on fighter's words- words he didn't believe in and didn't use. "It was a good fight. You've improved at using Darkness Dragon World."  
At this, Shido looked up- of course such a spoiled child responded well to praise. Though it was a bit painful to feed his ego, sitting in a room with him while he was depressed was somehow worse, at least when he was softened by the memory of Shido's enthusiastic appreciation for his work. (He couldn't help but think, perhaps, that they were equally suspectible to praise. It was an uncomfortable thought.)  
"Anyway, you're unlikely to be fighting against any of my other decks, so I still believe you can take any opponent who opposes you." Finally, he got a smile out of him. Even if he said it more out of confidence for the deck he made than the player behind it, no one else was willing to think he was capable of anything- even if his actual skill was negligible to the statement, it was better than nothing. 

With timing that couldn't be better, Retsu's mother's voice rang out from the bottom of the stairs, calling them both for dinner. Retsu got up and slid his deck case back into his drawer before looking to Shido.

"Come on, let's go." 

It was nothing like the meal the Shido household had prepared for him when he'd stayed over- that family had an awful case of overzealousness, but suprisingly Shido seemed to have no complaints when he sat down. Glancing at him from across the table, he couldn't be sure if Shido had fully recovered from his depressive spell in the room- realizing he didn't really know him well enough to tell. 

After the meal, Retsu showed Shido to the door, somewhat relieved to no longer have to worry about conversing with him- the drama from before combined with the somewhat awkward dinner leaving him exhausted. As Shido thanked his mother again for having him over, Retsu wondered if his mother would ever shut up about him after tonight.  
Putting on his shoes in the entryway, Shido stopped at the door with a bit of reluctance, turning to Retsu with that unnerving quietness.

"Gremlin, are we really friends?" 

Retsu hadn't expected to get a say in the matter, and though his first thought was to say no, he couldn't help but notice the desperation that had leaked back into his expression. The longer he waited to answer, the more uncomfortable the situation became, and he scrambled between his both reluctance to encourage him and to hurt him. 

"Perhaps."  
Instantly he saw the smallest drop in his expression, and regret bubbled up in him.  
"I mean, probably. Fine- yes, we are."  
It was obvious he was flubbing now, and he was suprised that it seemed to cheer Shido up anyhow. 

"It's been a long time since I've been invited over to a friend's house- at least, without them just wanting to get a good word in with my father." 

Once again the thought came to Retsu that Shido was probably more observant than he let on. Of course, when you're as unpleasant as he was, it would be easier to play ignorant and remain haughty.  
He had the unpleasant feeling that his reassurance at Retsu's failed sincerity was just as fake, and he briefly wished that Shido wasn't quite so open with him.

"I'm... I'm sorry, I'm not the friendly type." 

"It's alright, you're better than most. At least you try."  
Though it'd definitely been meant to reassure him, the resignated sigh in his voice only made Retsu feel more guilty. As Shido turned away, Retsu desperately reached back for memories of when he was friendlier, simultaneously reaching for Shido's wrist while only half thinking though his actions.

"Wait." Shido turned away from the door to look at him, and Retsu felt himself begin to fluster, entirely out of his element now. "Do you... Do you want to see the deck I'm working on for Kyoya?" 

Shido looked at him, obviously shocked that he'd made any sort of effort. He mulled over it for a moment before slipping back off his shoes, giving him a nod.  
Without letting go of his wrist, Retsu started leading Shido back into the house. Passing the kitchen on their way to the stairs, his mother poked her head out to look at them quizically. 

"Did he forget something in your room?" 

"No- we're just going to hang out a little longer." 

He thought he sounded like a little kid again, old memories bubbling up in his head as he led Shido to his room and started unpacking his deck building box. The Dragon Ein flag was definitely a complicated work- around that one card he had piles of dragon attribute cards from each world, which in themselves were seperated into piles to include and exclude. Though he had the focus of supporting Azi Dahaka, doing so involved altering so many rules that it felt impossible to make a cohesive deck. Shido knelt on the floor with him, looking over the scattered cards with a bit of awe. 

"A size four monster?! Is that even legal?!" 

Retsu simply pointed to Dragon Throne, not even bothering to give comment. How Kyoya had come by these cards was a mystery to him, even more mysterious than the rest of the Darkness Dragon World cards he somehow supplied. 

"Most of the support cards are Darkness Dragon World, which makes me want to focus the deck on it- but doing so would ignore all the possibilites that Dragon Ein provides." He was talking more to himself than to Shido, shuffling through the many cards scattered around him, once again trying to wrap his head around the options at his disposal. "I know I need to focus on growing his hand, but Darkness Dragon World only does that by depleting your own life, which he has more of than usual anyway..." 

"In that case, wouldn't Divine Dragon Creation work?" 

Retsu stopped, glancing over at Shido before moving his hand to the Ancient World pile.  
"Drawing two cards in exchange for two life... You're right, that's just what this needs- and if I combine it with Dragon Dreams it eliminates the risk." Flipping through the cards, he realized nearly every spell in Ancient World had the dragon attribute, and a fair number of them helped with drawing.  
Glancing at Shido, he saw that he was already busy combing through the Dragon World pile, another obvious choice, and he couldn't help but squirm as a similar image from the past rose to his brain. Getting up, he wandered to the picture on his desk, flipping it up. Nostolgia made him queasy as he looked at the picture of him and Baku surrounded by cards, old conversations echoing in his mind. 

"Hey, Gremlin, what about Dragogenius? Wait... Nevermind." 

Retsu turned back to him, ripping his thoughts away from the past. Putting the photograph down, he wandered back to the center of the room, bending down to look at the cards in Shido's hand. 

"Try not to focus too much on spells- too many and he won't be able to draw any monsters, and I want to keep the deck count to as close to fifty as I can so he's more likely to draw Azi Dahaka." 

"Right... Auugh, why are so many of these Armordragon specific?!"

"It's fine, just put them to the right of the good ones." 

He hadn't expected to colaborate on such an important deck with such a low skill fighter, and had never intended on doing more than showing him some of the key cards, but without realizing it he'd begun bouncing ideas off him. He'd forgotten what it was like to walk through a train of thought with someone else, putting card effects together like a puzzle, and it was Shido's phone that finally cut them off several scribbled notes and card piles later. 

"Ugh, it's my dad. He's wondering why I'm not home yet." Shido looked up at him, his relaxed smile mixed with a bit of reluctance. "Guess I better go."

"... Yeah." 

 

Returning to the doorway, the atmosphere was significantly lighter than it had been before, Shido still buzzing with excitement. 

"So, how many people besides us have seen those cards?" 

"Just you, me, and Kyoya himself."

"Really?! So it's like a secret!" 

"Maybe. I don't actually know if he wanted me showing anyone his cards." 

Shido gave a giddy smile, giggling as he put a finger to his lips. 

"I won't tell- heck, no one'd believe me!" Shido's phone buzzed again, reminding them both to cut their conversation short. Shido gave an irritated sigh, flipping open the phone to glance at the new message. "Well, I guess I'd better leave- I can't make Daddy worry." He closed the phone, using his free hand to give his hair a dramatic flip. "It's so hard being popular."  
Retsu waved him out the door, yawning as he shut it and glanced at the clock. With the sound of the door closing, his mother peered out of her room, a sly grin on her face. 

"So, sounds like you boys had fun."

"Mom-"

"You were getting kinda loud- it sounded like old times."

"Good _night_ , Mom." 

Retsu made his way up the stairs, breathing a tired sigh as he looked into his darkened room. Starting on putting away the piles of cards still on the floor, he glanced again at the photograph on his desk, still face up from when he'd picked it up earlier. He reached out to put it face down again, but after a moment he decided to let it be, continuing to clean up instead.  
He didn't give it another thought as he went to bed, his mind a sleepy buzz of card combinations and nostolgia.


End file.
